1968 World 600

Race details[1]
Race 21 of 54 in the 1968 NASCAR Grand National Series season
Layout of Charlotte Motor Speedway
Date	May 26, 1968 (1968-May-26)
Official name	World 600
Location	Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina
Course	Permanent racing facility 1.500 mi (2.414 km)
Distance	255 laps, 378 mi (442.89 km)
Scheduled Distance	400 laps, 600 mi (703 km)
Weather	Chilly with temperatures of 68 °F (20 °C); wind speeds of 13 miles per hour (21 km/h)
Average speed	104.207 mph (167.705 km/h)
Attendance	60,000
Pole position
Driver	Donnie Allison	Banjo Matthews
Most laps led
Driver	Buddy Baker	Ray Fox
Laps	98
Winner
No. 3	Buddy Baker	Ray Fox
Television in the United States
Network	untelevised
Announcers	none

The 1968 World 600, the ninth running of the event, was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that took place on May 26, 1968, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina.

Background

Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) quad-oval track located in Concord, North Carolina, was the location for the race.^[2] The track's turns were banked at twenty-four degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, was five degrees.^[3] The back stretch, opposite of the front, also had a five degree banking.^[3] During the 1968 season, Charlotte Motor Speedway hosted the NASCAR Grand National Series twice, with the other race being the National 500.

Designed and built by Bruton Smith and partner and driver Curtis Turner in 1959, the first World 600 NASCAR race was held at the 1.5 mi (2.4 km) speedway on June 19, 1960. On December 8, 1961, the speedway filed bankruptcy notice. Judge J.B. Craven of US District Court for Western North Carolina reorganized it under Chapter 10 of the Bankruptcy Act; Judge Craven appointed Robert "Red" Robinson as the track's trustee until March 1962. At that point, a committee of major stockholders in the speedway was assembled, headed by A.C. Goines and furniture store owner Richard Howard. Goines, Howard, and Robinson worked to secure loans and other monies to keep the speedway afloat.^[4]

By April 1963 some $750,000 was paid to twenty secured creditors and the track emerged from bankruptcy; Judge Craven appointed Goines as speedway president and Howard as assistant general manager of the speedway, handling its day-to-day operations. By 1964 Howard become the track's general manager, and on June 1, 1967, the speedway's mortgage was paid in full; a public burning of the mortgage was held at the speedway two weeks later.^[5]

Smith departed from the speedway in 1962 to pursue other business interests, primarily in banking and auto dealerships from his new home of Rockford, IL. He became quite successful and began buying out shares of stock in the speedway. By 1974 Smith was more heavily involved in the speedway, to where Richard Howard by 1975 stated, "I haven't been running the speedway. It's being run from Illinois."^[6] In 1975 Smith had become the majority stockholder, regaining control of its day-to-day operations. Smith hired H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler as general manager in October 1975, and on January 29, 1976, Richard Howard resigned as president and GM of the speedway.

Qualifying

Race report

This race was shortened to 255 laps due to rain after being able to race for three hours and four minutes in front of 60,000 people.^[7] Rain had started to appear much earlier in the race but flagman Johnny Bruner would not wave the caution flag until the conditions got dangerous.^[8] Throughout the day, 0.32 inches of rain were reported around Charlotte Motor Speedway.^[9]

Buddy Baker would defeat Donnie Allison under the race's sixth and final caution flag. Cale Yarborough would become the last-place finisher due to a crash on lap 45.^[7] All the competitors (except for Canadian Frog Fagan) was born in the United States of America. Bobby Allison suffered an engine problem on the 229th lap of the race; forcing him to retire in 28th place.^[7] Donnie Allison won the pole position at 159.223 miles per hour or 256.245 kilometres per hour during qualifying runs while actual race speeds would reach 104.207 miles per hour or 167.705 kilometres per hour.^[7] Both of Nord Krauskopf's teams would finish in the "top ten" during this race.^[7] The top ten finishers included Buddy Baker, Donny Allison, LeeRoy Yarbrough, David Pearson, Bobby Isaac, Charlie Glotzbach, Tiny Lund, James Hylton, Curtis Turner, and Sam McQuagg.^[7]

Darel Dieringer would be a part of the race's second crash on lap 212; giving him a 32nd-place finish.^[7] Earl Balmer, Paul Lewis, and Phil Wendt would retire from NASCAR after this racing event.^[10] Prior to this race, Balmer was known as the winner of the 1966 Daytona 500 qualifying race.

Notable crew chiefs for this race included Junior Johnson, Harry Hyde, Dale Inman, Banjo Matthews and Bud Moore.^[11]

References